Car-brake



(No Model.)

P. C. BREWSTER.

CAR BRAKE. No. 454,452. Patented June 23, 1891.

me mms Farms nu.. mfom-mn., wmumman, u. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANCIS CADVALADER BREVSTER, OF ELIZABETH, NEV JERSEY.

CAR-BRAK E.

SPECIFICATION forming' part of Letters Patent No. 454,452, dated June23, 1891.

Application filed October 12, 1888. Serial No. 287,937. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANCIS CADWALADER BREWSTER, a citizen of the UnitedStates of America, and a resident of Elizabeth, Union county, NewJersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Brakes,of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in a car-brake of that class inwhich the brake is adapted to be applied by hand power.

The invention has for its object to provide such an organization asshall be less likely to get out of order during its operation,therebyreducing the risk of accident to a minimum.

Another object of the invention is to give the operator a betterpurchase in applying the brake, so that in the case of horse-cars thedrivers long and tedious' duties may be materially lessened.

Another object of the invention is to provide a retractile spring whichwill serve to throw the brake into .its proper normal position, justescaping the surface of the wheels,

so that the least movement of the operatinghandle will bring the brakesinto frictional contact with the wheels.

The invention consists in the mechanical construction of the device,which is described fully by reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure l is a View of the bottom of the car, which is supposed to be inan inverted position. Fig. 2 is a view in elevation of the end of thecar, the dash-board being omitted. Fig. 3 is aview of one of the detailsonan enlarged scale.

Let a designate the rod oi' anysuitablebrake, the said rod being thatwhich Will apply and release the brake When respectively pulled towardthe end of the car and pushed toward the opposite end. This rod isconnected pivotally to one arm of a bent lever b, which is pivoted atits bent portion at the point c. The other arm of the lever is pivotedto the lower end of the handle f, which in turn is pivoted to the frameof the car at the journal c, Whose axis is parallel to the longitudinaldimension of the said car, the journal being horizontal, and as thehandle f isvertical the latter is rotated about its bearing at the saidjournal, and the said handle operates in a plane substantiallycoincident with the dashboard of the car. The handle is provided with asuitable lever-catch d of the ordinary construction. Pressing upon therod a is a spring g, located in a slot in the lever and rctained therein any convenient manner. This spring normally retains the said rod a atthe end of the slot, so that the brake is maintained off or released.There is therefore no unnecessary space or lost motion, for just as soonas the handle is pulled the rod a is moved and the brake applied. Inorder to allow for the rotation of the lever b upon the point at c, thepivot at cis made so much smaller than the hole in the said lever, thatthe said lever fits very loosely upon the said pivot.

All the parts above enumerated are duplicated at the opposite end of thecar, so that the two rods a are connected to the common lever 71,pivoted at the center of the car. Vhen this lever is rotated in onedirection, the brake is applied, and when rotated in the oppositedirection the brake is released.

The best position for the lever or handle f to occupy may be determinedby experiment, the drawing showing one position where the brake isapplied. In practice that position shown might be considered the bestfor the normal position, and the parts so arranged that a pull to theright would apply the brake. Under these conditions, the driver couldmore eiectually manipulate the brake.

There is a function of the slot containing the spring g that may bedescribed as follows: lVhen the brake is to be applied, and assumingthat the spring is taken out of the slot, then it will be noticed thatonly that handle f, which is operated by hand, will move, the otherhandle remaining stationary, because the rod d, connected to thelast-named handle, will move in the slot without moving the levercontaining the slot.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a car-brake, the combination of a rod dfor operating the brake, ahandlef, mounted upon a horizontal journal e,whose axis is parallel to the longitudinal dimensions of the car, ahorizontal pivoted bent lever provided with a slot in one of its arms,the rod a being SoV pivoted in said slot, and the handle f being pivotedto the said bent lever at the remaining arm of the Said lever.

2. In a car-brake, the combination of a handle standing in a verticalplane, a pivotsupport for the said handle, a horizontal bent leverhaving its center pivoted to a vertical axle or pivot and having one armconnected to the said handle by a pivot-joint and at the other end tothe operating-rod of the brake, a slot in the last-named arm of thelever and carrying the end of said rod, and a spring located in the saidslot and pressing upon the said rod.

3. In a car-brake, the combination of a rod co for operating the brake,a pivoted and horizontal bent lever provided With a slot in one of itsarms, and a vertical handle f, pivoted to the platform of the car and tothe remaining arm of the said bent lever, the rod t pressing upon aspring which is supported in said slot.

4. In a car-brake, the combination of a rod ct for operating the brake,a pivoted and horizontal bent lever, a vertical handle f, pivoted to theplatform of the car and to one arm of the said bent lever, and a springconnecting the remaining arm of the said bent lever to the said rod.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname, in presence of two Witnesses, this 4th day of Cctober, 1888.

FRANCIS OADWALADER BREWSTER.

Witnesses:

WM. GooDGE, EDWARD P. THOMPSON.

